SURPRISE, Ariz. A proposed five-building business-tech park near Happy Valley Road and the future 157th Avenue alignment is moving toward a final land-use decision after receiving a unanimous recommendation from the Surprise Planning and Zoning Commission.
The Happy Valley Biz-Tech Park would redevelop about 7.52 acres at the southwest corner of Happy Valley Road and 157th Avenue. The proposal requires a minor General Plan amendment from Neighborhood Character Area to Commerce and Office Character Area and a rezone from Rural Residential (RR) to Regional Commercial (C-3) with a Planned Unit Development overlay.
Surprise Planning and Zoning commissioners recommended approval of both requests 6-0 on Aug. 20, according to the city’s meeting record. The case is FS25-1081. The proposal was subsequently placed on the Sept. 15 City Council agenda as Resolution 2026-127 and Ordinance 2026-18. As of publication, West Valley Post has not verified the council’s final vote, so the project is not being described here as finally approved.
Five buildings aimed at smaller employers
Plans call for five flex-tech buildings ranging from roughly 13,000 to 23,000 square feet. The concept is intended for businesses that combine office, warehouse and work space, with potential users including technology and research firms, medical or office users, HVAC contractors, print shops and artisan manufacturing operations.
Owner/developer Happy Valley Road LLC, associated with Perk Prop Real Estate, is seeking the land-use changes. Project materials identify Ware Malcomb as the design firm and Withey Morris Baugh as legal counsel.
Adam Baugh, the attorney representing the developer, described the proposal’s broader significance to ABC15: “This project will determine the direction of the northwest part of Surprise.”
Baugh said the project is intended in part to give small-business owners in northwest Surprise commercial inventory closer to where they live instead of requiring trips across Surprise or to another city.
Planning Commission backed the change 6-0
The project appeared as Items 6 and 7 on the Surprise Planning and Zoning Commission’s Aug. 20 agenda. Item 6 covered the minor General Plan amendment and Item 7 covered the rezoning request. The commission recommended approval of both by 6-0 votes, with Vice Chair Anthony Spata excused.
The unanimous recommendation is an important step, but the commission does not make the final decision on these requests. The City Council is the approval authority for the General Plan amendment and rezoning.
Project materials also show that surrounding property owners submitted a statutory written protest. Opponents have argued that the proposed commercial intensity is incompatible with nearby residential uses and could worsen traffic as northwest Surprise continues to develop.
Traffic and 155th Avenue are part of the larger story
The proposed park sits close to several transportation projects that could reshape this part of Surprise. Access is planned through a right-in, right-out driveway on Happy Valley Road and a full-access connection to 157th Avenue, according to project information reported by AZBEX.
Nearby, ADOT and regional transportation planners are advancing a new Loop 303 interchange at the 155th Avenue alignment. The project includes improving and extending 155th Avenue between Happy Valley Road and Loop 303, along with other connections in the corridor. Final design began in 2026 and construction is anticipated in 2028.
That future network is central to the debate over development north of Grand Avenue. Residents have raised concerns that commercial and residential growth is arriving faster than the road system can absorb it, while project supporters argue that employment and business space closer to new neighborhoods can reduce the need for longer trips elsewhere in the Valley.
What happens next
The Sept. 15 City Council agenda listed the General Plan amendment as Resolution 2026-127 and the rezone as Ordinance 2026-18. West Valley Post is monitoring the city’s official record for the final council action and will update this story when the vote is verified.
If the land-use requests receive final approval, the project would still have additional development steps ahead. AZBEX reported that a conditional use permit application, site plan and final plat are expected later. Developers have said construction could begin as early as 2027, with initial tenants potentially occupying space in early 2028. Those dates remain projections.
The project is also being tracked on West Valley Post’s 163rd Avenue & North Surprise Development Tracker.
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